Proving that truth can be far more entertaining than fiction, a FedEx employee in Memphis decided to embark on an unexpected career shift—from logistics to the very hands-on acquisition of high-value goods. Unfortunately for him, and fortunately for those who believed “finders keepers” wasn’t part of the FedEx job description, his new venture quickly unraveled.
Meet Antwone Tate, a former FedEx worker whose ambitions, it appears, went beyond simply ensuring packages reached their rightful destinations. Instead, Tate allegedly took a detour, finding irresistible allure in packages containing not just ordinary items but treasure troves of significant value. Who could resist, one might grimly chuckle, giggling about Tate’s fairy tale—or rather, a cautionary tale—of misappropriation.
The caper began to unfold at the sprawling Memphis Hub, where diligent members of Loss Prevention began to notice that not all packages marked for delivery were making it to their intended destinations. The case triggered deeper investigations when a handful of conspicuously valuable items vanished: an $8,500 diamond ring, gold bars stacking up to nearly $14,000, and a collection of coveted baseball cards—the kind that capture the heart of any serious collector.
Tate’s first mistake was thinking that what sparkles won’t leave a paper trail; a theory proven mightily flawed. Armed with poorly conceived plans, Tate frequented a nearby pawn shop, unaware that using his own identity for transactions wasn’t the masterstroke move he fantasized it to be. As fed-up as the FedEx executives overseeing the Memphis hub, pawn shop paperwork quickly linked the transactions to Tate’s everyman credentials.
But Tate’s saga of sticky fingers doesn’t end with him turning a licensed blight on his integrity for jewelry and precious metal endeavors. Baseball aficionados everywhere reading through this tale will collectively moan, as he snagged a selection of venerable cards that make up part of baseball’s storied past. Among the cardboard treasures was a 1915 Cracker Jack Chief Bender and a 1933 Goudey Sport Kings Ty Cobb card, relics valued at about $6,800. Yet, where does a man lacking subtlety and brilliance of criminal deviation go next with baseball legends in his hands? On eBay, naturally.
The sought-after cards were hopelessly in plain sight, waiting to be discovered under the seller name antta_57. A pseudonym that functioned as a confession as brazen as shouting “I did it!” at a baseball game. Unsurprisingly, the authorities traced this online misadventure back to Tate, offering testimony to his conviction-worthy follies.
Faced with this cascade of ‘oops’, FedEx has unleashed their signature brand of corporate dismissal. Their part was played with a statement firmly drawing the line between employee duties and misdeeds—reiterating that while FedEx moves packages globally, ‘moving’ them to a personal collection does not fall within their endorsed logistics practices. Antwone Tate, now sporting a new charge sheet alongside baseball’s greats, is charged with theft of property. His escapades echo through both the delivery and baseball communities as a hard lesson in what not to do when metaphorical gloves are off.
The moral pulse of this story lies palpably just beneath its amusing exterior: always know when to hold ’em and know when to essentially ship ‘em. Ultimately, as you track your packages with eager arrival anticipation, be ever vigilant, and should your package become an unforeseen casualty to the adventurous whims of yet another rogue handler, perhaps eBay holds the answer. Be alert, though—avoid placing a bid on any listing showing remnants of an old moniker like antta_58.